Is Bigger Really Better? The Statistics actually Say “No”!
Smaller churches are necessary, needed, and often more fruitful than we have been led to believe.
There are millions of people in smaller congregations across the country who live with a feeling that they are failures because their church isn’t as big as the megaplex congregation down the street. This is sad and should not be the case.
Holding the Church Hostage
"The leaders of the church feel this is what is best for the mission of this church and cannot allow the church to be held hostage by threatening words or acts.”
Jesus encouraged us to “shake the dust from your sandals” and move on if folks were not receptive to the Gospel. I believe the same guiding lesson should be taken to heart when the work of the church is threatened by hostage-takers. And not once did Jesus ever let those who were either followers or potential followers hold his work hostage. He let them walk away
What is a pastor?
"A pastor is a CEO; a pastor is a motivator; a pastor is an entrepreneur; a pastor is a counselor; a pastor is a best friend; a pastor is a teacher."
A pastor is a nutritionist. I am called to feed Christ’s sheep. That means I have to know what they need and lead them to the pastures where those needs are met. It means I don’t preach for my interests, but for their health. Overtly or in round-a-bout ways the question “what do you... Continue Reading
What Is Forgiveness?
The offer of forgiveness is unconditional (for God, and it should be for us), but forgiveness itself is conditioned upon repentance
Overcoming anger and resentment is important, but forgiveness is something more, something different, something that involves two parties instead of one. Many Christians, influences by Lewis Smedes and a lot of pop psychology, have a therapeutic understanding of forgiveness. They think of forgiveness as a unilateral, internal effort to get our emotions under control.... Continue Reading
What a Woman Wants in a Man
An artist has an eye for beauty, and yet, the unbelieving artist struggles with the truth associated with it
As I was rollerblading the other day, I was thinking about artistic geniuses (stop laughing). It seems that every unbelieving artistic genius is also a bit insane—or a lot insane! I always thought it was because they just had too much talent to handle, but I came to a different conclusion about halfway down Sudley Lane.
Being Known For What We Are For
Surely no one will turn that against us. If we just say nice, non-controversial things, people will be nice to us.
Christians are constantly being labeled as anti-gay, anti-women, anti-science, anti-environment, etc. While there are numerous examples of Christians saying hurtful and mean things, the vast majority of Christians are for human flourishing and living to the high standard that God has set for us.
Disney Princesses, Football Coaches, Baptist Missionaries and Bad History
The Bible gives us a realistic understanding of human nature and a realistic answer to it.
I call this the Disney theology of human nature. This theology assumes that most people in the world are really pretty good (Cinderella, Ariel, Pocahontas, etc.) while a few people out there are really bad (Cruella DeVille, Ursala, Jafar, etc.). This is not a Christian understanding of human nature. For that reason, we need to... Continue Reading
How Bible Preachers Can Turn Into Cult Leaders
High profile church leaders need accountability to keep them focused on Christ and his truth.
There are 3 stepping stones used by personality cult leaders in developing a following. Loyalty to Bible to Movement to the Leader. If they were just to go around saying: ‘I am the messianic hero – follow me,’ then they would mostly just be ignored as crazy. So instead they use a 3 step strategy.... Continue Reading
Atheism, the NY Times, and My Hometown
When people do build their faith on such signs, they are making themselves vulnerable to attack
The big question that people ask when hearing of someone falling away from the faith is “Why?” What caused DeWitt to abandon the ministry and the faith that he once held so earnestly? DeWitt and I are about the same age and were probably in high school at the same time. But I don’t know DeWitt, and I certainly don’t presume to be able to account for everything that led to his apostasy.
I Asked Jesus into My Heart Many Times
I am not ungrateful for many of the experiences of my youth. I still have at my disposal a lot of KJV Bible verses.
The gospel is not, “Ask Jesus into your heart,” or, “Close with Christ,” or, “Accept Jesus as your personal Savior,” but, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved, you and your house.” Experience is not the gospel. The gospel is about faith.